Yuki and the Beast
by cranapple
Summary: What's the first thing Yukimura does after hospitalization? Find a coach to watch over the Rikkaidai Tennis Club, of course, and he chooses Seiika. The good news is that she's Yukimura's sister. The bad news: she's Yukimura's sister. SanadaXOC
1. Chapter 1

**I do not own Prince of Tennis!**

**A/N: I just had to. XP**

**This idea/storyline would not leave me alone, so now I'm embracing it. :P**

**OC's ftw? I guess we'll see.**

**Enjoy! :)**

* * *

**Afternoon tennis practice was minutes away from beginning, and Vice-Captain Sanada heard footsteps that suddenly stopped behind but two feet from him. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw the familiar curly, blue locks swaying in the slight breeze.**

"**New coach, huh? Very funny, Yukimura," Sanada said, barely able to hide his smirk. "Don't try to fool me." He turned to face his Captain, only to find a slightly petrified girl, her eyes widening as his almost-friendly face became a sudden, cold glare.**

**The delicately framed girl then closed her eyes and furrowed her brows nervously. "Um…" she croaked.**

"**Who are you?" he demanded, contempt laced into each syllable. **_**You're certainly not him…**_

"**Ano… Excuse me, but is this the Rikkai Daigaku Fuzoku Tennis Club?" she asked, as if reciting some mental script inside her head.**

_**Did she just ignore me?**_** Impatience seized Sanada. "Who. Are. You." He practically spits at her.**

**Her brilliantly blue eyes blink open, shock and dismay coloring her face as she realized that he asked this more than once. "Ah! I'm sorry!"**

**But the second her eyes were opened, not in fear, but in shock and realization, Sanada knew immediately who she was. **_**The look she has is so similar to the one that **_**he **_**had when he was told that…**_

"**I'm Seiika," she stated quickly.**

**Sanada didn't need her answer, though. How foolish he was to think that their Buchou had made a miraculous recovery and was coming back today as the new coach. It all added up in his head now, her navy blue hair and eyes, the look she had just given him, and finally, the confidence that the buchou had in the new coach. There was no doubt in his mind. This is Yukimura Seiika, younger sister of the Rikkaidai Tennis Club's Captain, and now Rikkaidai Tennis Club's new coach.**

* * *

_Sigh. After all the preparations Mom and Dad made so I could make it to Japan after winter vacation, I'm still sticking out like a sore thumb. Why, oh why, did they not think to get me my uniform?_

Despite her green-suit attired classmates giving her, and her long, flowy T-shirt with zipper leggings, awkward glances, Seiika was actually content. Although she had no connections from freshman year in this school, the people here were nice enough. However, her heart started slowly sinking as she tried to imagine what would happen when her name was called for attendance.

"_Yukimura Seiika?"_

"_Nani? What? Like Yukimura Seiichi, Captain of the Tennis Team? He has a sister? Apparently, he does. Oi, do you think she's any good at tennis?" they would mutter._

She almost missed her name being called, amidst the chattering inside her head.

"Koyashi? …Koyashi Seiika?" the sensei called.

"A-a… Hai, here!" she stammered.

_Of course! _She'd use her mother's maiden name, as she had in Japan so long ago._ Maybe my parents _do_ plan things for the better._

It was strange, yet invigorating. In America, she was Seiika Yukimura, but in Japan, she is Koyashi-san. School flew by for Seiika, except for in English class, where it seemed like an eternity those 5 minutes the teacher gave her to speak in front of the class in American. Blushing furiously, she just talked about her mom, her dog, Steve, and her best friend, Hannah. When finally back in her seat, Seiika recalled her classmates nodding fiercely at every word she said, even though she was sure they didn't know what she was saying, let alone what a 'Yorkshire Terrier' was.

The ending bell was a welcome sound, as it always had been no matter where she was. But that happy feeling lasted all of 2 seconds, for the bell became a reminder of why she was here, in Rikkaidai and not Yamabuki Middle School (which was closer to her and her mom's apartment), here in Tokyo and not New York.

_Well, there are other obvious reasons for me being here besides becoming coa-. _She couldn't even think it without having her brain stopping her halfway.

* * *

It had been mid-November when she received a letter from her brother, Seiichi, and she was shocked to see it. She hadn't seen him in 8 years, and besides the yearly call during the holidays, they didn't talk. She read the letter. Once. Twice. Then 5 more times, before she decided to show it to her mom.

_**[Seiika,]**_ it had said. Her name was in Japanese, but the rest was in English. She found that very endearing and smiled.

_**[How are things in America? Good, I hope. Unfortunately, things aren't going so well here. My fever hasn't gotten any better since the beginning of fall,]**_

Guilt had spread through her body in unpleasant waves as her smile disappeared. She had never heard of this fever.

_**[and Dad's starting to get worried.]**_

That's just like him, only starting to get worried about his child's health after over 2 months. But she pushed that matter aside to keep on reading.

_**[But don't worry; your brother is strong! I just hope that you and Mom (and Steve, too!) would come and visit us in Japan, seeing you guys just might make me feel better.]**_

_**[-Seichii]**_

Seiika's mom had the same reactions to it as her; however she did not want her to just pack her bags to leave for Japan when school was already under way. "Your brother's going to be okay," her mom had said when Seiika made a fuss. "He even said so, he's strong!"

She couldn't help but agree, and the decision to move halfway across the globe for who knows how long just seemed too rash at the time. That is, until the second letter came a week later.

_[Seiika,] _her native Japanese lettering said. It was followed by the American words her eyes had become accustomed to over the years, but it did not make her smile this time.

'Why is the handwriting different,' she wondered. It was a lot lighter, and messier. 'It couldn't be…'

_[If you did not expect this letter to come, please tell Mom to call Dad right now.]_

She did exactly as was told, sensing the urgency. While her mom was waiting to be transferred, Koyashi slipped quietly back into her room, clutching the letter a little too hard.

_[I'll leave Dad to explain to Mom, but I want to tell you what's going on.]_

Her lungs seemed incapable of taking in air, then.

_[It seems as though I have a disease… A quite… harmful one, at that.]_

At that moment, her mom exploded into the phone a stream of unmentionable words, shortly followed by heaving sobs.

She stopped reading. She wanted to wake up from this nightmare. She closed her eyes, but she couldn't escape the letter. She quietly shut her door, but she couldn't escape her mother's cries. She clenched her fists painfully, but she couldn't escape the pain.

_[I have Guilliain-Barre Syndrome.]_

_I don't even know what this disease is… God, I'm so stupid. I don't even know how my own brother, my onii-san, is suffering right now. The pain he's going through…_

But for some reason, she sensed that her brother was more pained in writing the letter. For that reason alone, she willed her stinging eyes to continue reading.

_[Don't worry, Seiika. It doesn't hurt.]_

She could almost hear him chuckle.

_[My concerns are elsewhere. Please seriously consider coming to Japan. I know, this is a selfish request, but I also need you to do something.]_

* * *

And that was how she found herself around Rikkaidai's Tennis Courts, and trembling in the presence of this scary tennis senior-san, who unbeknownst to her was the infamous Fukubuchou. He had been mumbling about 'don't make me laugh' or something, but his facial expression when he turned around made it impossible to think he had ever laughed before in his life-a cold-hearted look of complete hatred.

She shut her eyes in fear. Then in concentration, closed them harder. _Come on, I made a whole script last night. Think, Seiika, THINK!_ She never did well under pressure.

"Um…" she meant to say, but it sounded more like a croak. After some self-mental abuse, she continued. "Ano… Excuse me, where is the Rikkai Daigaku Fuzoku Tennis Club?" _YES!_ She smiled to herself.

"Who. Are. You." He glared.

Her eyes opened wide in shock. She looked up at him, just realizing how tall he was. _Wait, he just asked me who I was… Didn't he ask me that just a moment ago—FRICK. _When she was mentally abusing herself before, she didn't process his question… Until now.

"Ah! I'm sorry! I'm Seiika…" she replied quickly. In her panic, she didn't realize that she blurted out her words in American. She wasn't sure that he had heard him, though. He seemed to be in distant thought. She awkwardly pushed some of her long, curly hair behind her ear, waiting for some response.

He finally awoke from his trance. "Aa," he replied, and turning, walked away.

She stared hopelessly after him. He never answered _her_ question. She didn't want to bother him again, but she was going to be late. "Ah…"

"Are you coming?" stopping in his tracks, he called back.

"H-h-hai!" she called back. She ran to catch up while he continued walking. After a few tense moments where only their footsteps thwarted away complete silence, she tentatively spoke, "Y-y-you see, I'm here running an errand for my brother."

She looked at him for any response, but he only seemed to be glowering off into the distance under his cap. She quickly looked down at her feet and quietly continued, "You probably know him…" She gulped. "His name's-"

"You're from America," he interrupted. There was no hint of a question in the statement.

Seiika was caught off guard. "Uh… Um, yeah. How did you know?" This senior couldn't possibly be in any of her classes.

"You spoke to me in fluent English moments ago," he replied in his deep, indifferent voice.

"I… did?" she asked in shock. She then remembered when emotion took over common sense just a few minutes ago. "Ah! Yes, I did, sorry." _I'm apologizing a lot to this guy, aren't I?_ "Oh, and call me Koyashi, Seiika's my first name…" she blushed._ Well, I am being pretty stupid._

The uncomfortable silence then replaced the awkward (for Seiika, anyway) conversation. It was then disrupted by the sounds of rallying at the courts. The senior began walking faster, and right when he got inside the fence of the courts he stopped.

"What are you doing?" he yelled loudly into the courts. Even though she hadn't done anything, Seiika found herself feeling immediately fearful and guilty from the tone alone.

"Fukubuchou!" they all cried simultaneously, as they all immediately stopped what they were doing and bowed.

"What is the meaning of this? Tennis practice didn't start yet." the senior stated.

_Geez, this 'Fukubuchou' guy must be really important._

It was then that 6 people, all standing near each other, stood up from their bow and looked at him questioningly. Seiika couldn't help but look over at them, only to find some of them switch their curious gaze to her, and she immediately looked down.

"20 LAPS!" his voice rang out.

"HAI!" the members cried, and ran off. But the six who rose from their bow early didn't budge.

"Oi, Fukubuchou!" the shortest of them called.

"I think you have some explaining to do…" one of them called. His eyes were closed, but Seiika could see this boy focused his gaze from Fukubuchou, to her, and then back to Fukubuchou. "Genichirou."

"YOUR NAME IS GENICHIROU?" She looked up incredulously at the boy she was standing next to.

He glanced down at her, and she froze, immediately regretting her action. He then looked away and started walking towards the rebel six.

_I thought his name was Fukubuchou…_ _Oh my god, I'm an idiot. 'Buchou' means captain, so Fukubuchou means… _She seriously felt the urge to punch herself in the face. _Wait, but that means that this is the one Seiichi was talking about; the 'kind and compassionate vice-captain, Sanada Genichirou.'_ She smiled remembering her brother's words, but she wondered why everything that had happened so far contradicted them.

* * *

He tried giving her a chance.

But his already guarded mind closed off completely when she had the nerve to call this "an errand" for her brother.

She had looked to him for a response, but that only made him more irritated. "You probably know him," she continued, not noticing that he was seething.

_Of course, I know him. It's _you_ that doesn't know him. He would call coaching the team a _privilege_, not an errand. It's obvious that you don't want to be here, so why are _you_ here instead of the one who truly wants to be here; your brother—_

"His name's-"

"You're from America."

He interrupted, stopping Seiika from letting her give the excuse that he already knew, as to why he should be respectful of her. But he wasn't going to let her mooch off of the renowned reputation of Yukimura right now.

He stopped paying attention to her words as they made their way to the court. He was carefully tossing around words in his head that he would say in just a moment. Unconsciously speeding up, he went into the courts.

"What are you doing?" he yelled.

"Fukubuchou!" the members all cried simultaneously, stopping what they were doing and bowing.

"What is the meaning of this?" he gave a knowing look directly at the regulars. "Tennis practice didn't start yet."

The regulars stood up from their bow and looked at him questioningly, then switching their gaze to Seiika.

"20 LAPS!"

"HAI!" the majority of the members cried before running off, with the six regulars remaining.

"Oi, Fukubuchou!" Kirihara called.

"I think you have some explaining to do, Sanada," Yanagi called after. He wondered why he had arrived late with this girl, but now his brain reeled, not knowing why Sanada would use the code words-"What is the meaning of this?"-for 'emergency among the regulars'.

Ignoring, for the most part, Seiika's outburst ("YOUR NAME IS GENICHIROU?"), he walked over to the utterly puzzled regulars.

But he only raised the confusion in them by using as few words and details as possible to explain the situation. "That's Yukimura's sister. She's going to be our new coach."

Yanagi knew that these were both true, being the good data man that he was, but the way Sanada chose to tell them baffled him. Even _he_ knew more information about this than Sanada just chose to share. _What is he trying to pull…?_ he thought.

The stunned silence was then interrupted by the answer to Yanagi's question:

"WHAT THE HELL?" their kohai's shrill cry rang.

Yanagi only watched as the following events left him wondering if Yukimura knew how much his manipulative nature had rubbed off on Sanada.

* * *

"WHAT THE HELL?" a voice rang out through the courts.

The group, now of 7-including Sanada, were staring directly at Seiika. Some gazed, as if trying to understand, others looked strangely amused, one looked with a blazing glare, but one was trembling in shock, and was most definitely the source of the yell.

"Sh-sh-sh-she…" the shaking one now pointed at her. He turned his head towards the glaring Fukubuchou. "You're kidding, right Fukubuchou?"

Sanada didn't lift his glare, nor acknowledge his question in any way. But Kirihara seemed to gain comfort in his own words. "Yeah, yeah, just a joke. Not a very funny one, but you're Fukubuchou, you probably don't understand funny…" and he laughed to himself.

"Akaya." Sanada turned his gaze directly onto the now hysterical junior.

"Ha-Aha-Aha," Kirihara laughed, staggering between syllables.

"Akaya, self-control…" Sanada warned.

But that did nothing but ignite the junior's overflowing emotion. "BUT FUKUBUCHOU," Kirihara yelled, suddenly out of the fit of laughter. "THIS IS ALL A JOKE." He smiled, but it showed signs of anxiety. "THERE'S NO WAY THAT _SHE-_" he pointed to Seiika.

"Akaya," Sanada called firmly, agitation evident in his voice.

But Kirihara continued, "COULD BE THE NEW COACH, OR EVEN BUCHOU'S SIS-"

He was firmly interrupted by a hard smack in the face, and the sound seemed to resonate throughout the courts. Kirihara gingerly placed a hand on the place where he was slapped, before pain and embarrassment sent waves of blood pulsing through his face.

"Self-control is an important virtue. 50 laps to remember that." Sanada stated. "And 10 more," he added, seeing Kirihara's expression change from shock to angry confusion. "To clear your mind."

"Hai," Kirihara replied quickly, glaring daggers at someone before running off to obey the command.

_Good boy,_ Sanada thought, smiling internally. He glanced over at the terrified junior on the other side of the court. _I think she got the message… courtesy of Akaya._

Seiika didn't know what to do after receiving the completely unexpected scowl from Kirihara.

* * *

**A/N: Review if you'd like!**

**If you hate? LOL :P**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Yay, chapter 2! :D**

**Enjoy! :)**

* * *

Seiika only heard the shriek of shock made by the junior, who she recognized to be her classmate. _Kirihara, was it…?_ She saw the boys' facial expressions change as Sanada spoke to them, and they each gave her a _look._

_I guess he told them…_ she thought to herself, mentally throwing out her prepared script.

But she, along with the other regulars, fixed their gaze on Kirihara, as he was becoming increasingly hysterical. He was pointing at Seiika and yelling at Sanada. _What's wrong…?_

**Smack.**

"Oh my…" came out muffled, as she lifted her hand to cover her wide open mouth. She couldn't look away from Kirihara's reddened face as he was scolded by Sanada. Stupefied, she kept on replaying the scene in her head.

She blinked back into reality when she realized Kirihara's eyes had locked with hers. Confused and flustered, she tore the hand off of her face, almost lifting it to wave when she focused her eyes on his face. He was definitely _not_ looking for a greeting.

He was _glowering_ at her.

Kirihara's burning scowl was just as bad as Sanada's icy glare.

She felt her heart beat from initial shock, and now from a biting fear as he slowly lifted his eyes, turning and leaving to run laps.

* * *

"Now practice will commence," Sanada commanded, as the last of the runners returned from their laps. Kirihara, even though he had less time and three times the laps, was not one of them.

Sanada could see the members curiously eye Seiika, but none of them dared to speak up. "Courts to regulars and members in groups A and B. Groups C, D, and E, warm up and be prepared to rotate."

"Hai!"

Sanada glanced at Seiika, scoffing at the self-conscious junior who looked around nervously, extremely out of place. _These courts are his home,_ he thought, making his way-away from her-to supervise from the bench.

* * *

"You," a light-blue haired senior called.

Seiika turned to see that he was talking to her from opposite her side on the court she was occupying. "H-hai?" she blinked.

"Are you going to move, or what?" he asked indifferently, absently hitting his racket against his back.

"Ah… Sorry…" she mumbled, her already downed spirits lowering even more. She bowed, turned, and hurried off, blindly running into a bespectacled senior, who had been waiting patiently on her side of the court to start the match. "Forgive me," she blushed furiously now, but did not let her voice go above a whisper, and ran off to the bleachers.

Yagyuu held pity in his eyes as he watched Seiika flee. "Niou," he called sternly.

"Hai, hai," Niou replied. "How _ungentlemanly_ of me," he sarcastically continued.

"Very well," Yagyuu replied with a straight face. He readied himself. "Now serve, if you please."

Niou served to his doubles partner with a smirk before his face turned stern with a last glance at Seiika.

One court away to the right, Marui and Jackal were rallying. "Jackal, why aren't you focused?" Marui yelled angrily, even though his wide grin and jumpiness, which was higher than usual, found the redhead just as guilty.

Jackal's resentful glare, corresponding with Niou's in both emotion and target, was forcefully pulled away as he turned to stare at his doubles partner. "Ah…" He habitually touched his bald head, which along with reinforcing the need for restraint, gave a convenient excuse. "I… haven't shaved in a while. It's hindering me."

Marui raised his eyebrows to comprehend, and his eyes widened as he processed the words. He started cracking up, and completely forgot catching Jackal eye Seiika oddly.

Yanagi cocked his head to the sound of Marui laughing, letting Kirihara's serve fly by him.

"Sempai, be serious!" the junior yelled.

But Yanagi couldn't pay full attention to the match. There was too much data to be collected. _It seems as though the regulars are torn in this situation._ He took into account Yagyuu's pity, Niou's stern face, Marui's amused face (both before and now), Jackal's hateful glare, and Kirihara's…

_Akaya?_

"Akaya, what are you…" And Yanagi saw it again, the burning scowl. Kirihara was serving, but towards the other side.

* * *

Sanada, who was making note of what to be added to their training based on the members' current performances, frowned as a ball soared past him. _A careless hit._ The thought angered him, but in the split second he chose to disregard it, he missed two things.

It was a glowering Akaya who had just served this way.

And the ball headed behind Sanada… Towards the bleachers.

The ball, which was oddly picking up speed despite flying against the air, was headed straight towards Yukimura Seiika.

If anybody other than Yanagi Renji watched the shot, they would've expected a horrible impact. But the genius clearly saw that Rikkai's ace had pinpointed the angle and velocity with frightening accuracy. "At this rate, it is going to land 7.3 feet away, only to have the distance closed to less than 2 feet apart after rolling," he whispered.

His measurements were spot-on, as Seiika looked down at the neon flash that was quickly rolling towards her. She reached down and curiously picked it up.

"Oi!" Kirihara called, walking towards the bleachers.

Seiika felt her face drain. She stayed crouched on the ground, afraid to meet his eyes again.

"Gomen, gomen!" he apologized with a sneer. He stopped walking when he reached the bench, leaning his lower body on it. "Just toss it here," Kirihara yelled, the situation not noticed yet by the bench's occupant.

_No, no, no!_ Seiika screamed in her head. She had a horrible throw, and she knew it. She stood up, wondering, _What if I just run over and hand it to him?_ She saw Kirihara was now frowning, and realized that there was no other way. Seiika drew her right arm back, and threw the ball. It actually wasn't that bad a throw, only a few inches off.

But it was only a few inches that separated Kirihara's hand from Sanada's head.

She closed her eyes.

When she peeked them open seconds later, she was _mortified._

* * *

Kirihara served to an unresponsive Yanagi. His eyes narrowed at the human computer, who was no doubt processing data. "Sempai, be serious!" he yelled, not hiding the annoyance in his voice.

It didn't matter who this girl was, or why she was here. What did matter was that she was distracting his sempais.

He angrily clenched the ball in his hand, but smiled as a plan found its way into his mind. He served the ball with a grin, as it passed Sanada's head by only centimeters, and landed right by Seiika. _Just as I planned._ "Oi!" he yelled._ Don't fail me now, Fukubuchou!_

"Gomen, gomen!" He walked over to the bench and leaned against it. He saw Sanada not paying any attention at all to either him or the carefully served ball, now in the hands of Seiika. _Crap, this isn't working!_ "Just toss it here," Kirihara called with a frown that he didn't notice was there. _If he would just realize how distracting this girl is…_

But Kirihara didn't need to try to turn Sanada's attention to Seiika anymore.

A neon flash suddenly bounced off of Sanada's head with a short _thunk_. The world seemed to have quieted as Kirihara's mouth opened widely in shock, and then the corners turned as he was about to laugh.

_This. _He saw Sanada, confused, touch the back of his head where he was hit.

_Is._ He watched realization dawn on Sanada's priceless face.

_Perfect._ He finally let out the laughter, but only after Sanada shot up from his seat, yelling "TARUNDORU!"

* * *

Seiika's heart and lung functions ceased, as her brain only output one thought.

_Shit._

The blood rushed to her face as she willed her legs to move, taking her next to the laughing junior and the fuming Sanada.

"I am SO-!" she choked on her words, seeing death in the eyes that Sanada now focused onto her.

In fact, everyone's eyes were focused on the scene. Kirihara had stopped laughing, but the mischievous grin that replaced it wasn't any better.

Before Seiika could even attempt to finish her apology, she was interrupted by a hostile whisper. "Ten laps."

Her eyes held pure confusion. "N-n-nani?"

"Now!" Sanada bellowed.

She jumped back in shock, and sprinted away. When she reached outside the fence, she stopped. Hesitation gripped her feet, but relinquished its grip as she began circling the courts.

**First lap.**

_This is harder than I thought…_

_And can they stop staring at me?_

**Second lap.**

_I'm so out of shape..._

_Why did you choose _me,_ Seiichi?_

**Third lap.**

_Just kill me._

_I'm letting everyone down…_

_But it's not like they had any hope in me to let down in the first place._

She stopped, clutching both knees for support while gasping for breath. She trembled from both shame and overextending herself. _I give up…_

"What's wrong?"

_At least someone cares._

But the words were anything but sympathetic, and they came from the absolute worst person.

Her thought had been sarcastic.

She looked up from her exhausted posture, the water swimming in her eyes blurring the face of the Fukubuchou. "Sanada-san…" barely came out, strained behind both fatigue and pure anguish.

"There's still seven laps to go." he stated simply.

_What the hell is wrong with this… _She jerked her head away from his loathsome face. _Can't he see that I'm freaking exhausted? Haven't I been humiliated enough…? _Her body, physically and emotionally spent, had its knees buckle underneath her. She felt small tears run down her face as her knees and palms slammed onto the concrete. Hard. _Damn it…_

"Stand!" Sanada yelled. "Yukimura Seiika!"

Her eyes, glued to the floor, widened and her breathing became shakier as her unfulfilled nightmare from school earlier that day had been realized. Everyone began to murmur and whisper hastily, with bits of 'Nani?', 'Buchou's sister?', 'he _has_ one?'. Before the whispers got out of control, she heard them stop to silently gaze directly at her. Sanada had raised one hand to stop the chatter, and he eyed her with that look of hatred from when they had first met no more than 2 hours ago.

"Yukimura's sister," Sanada kept his gaze on Seiika, but addressed his words-sneers-to the others. "And our new coach."

It was utterly quiet, but she could hear them perfectly. Amongst the looks of disbelief, disappointment, even anger, there was a clear, unspoken message in every one of their eyes; 'You are not our coach.'

She felt trapped, suffocating under their stares. She wanted to scream, but she couldn't get a sound out. She wanted to run, but she couldn't move. She wanted to stop crying, but her body refused to listen to her.

She was frozen; locked in emotional breakdown.

* * *

"Oi!" Marui had been shaking the whimpering girl by the shoulders, but she hadn't responded. The concern in his eyes reflected in the eyes of the others crowded around them.

"Do you have her mom's number?" Jackal asked Sanada, his initial contempt taken over by his kind conscience.

The vice-captain just stood there in shock, while Yanagi interrupted, "He doesn't; they only arrived in Japan yesterday."

"What do we do…?" Niou asked no one in particular.

Everyone dropped their eyes helplessly. Sanada still hadn't moved.

"Maybe…" Yagyuu said softly, after what seemed like an eternity. "We take her to Yukimura?"

Kirihara jerked his head up. "Well, we're going to have to, aren't we?" he stated, hope rising.

Yanagi stared straight at Sanada. "Genchirou."

"Aa." Sanada seemed to snap out of his trance, but not entirely. "Everyone, you are dismissed," he said with enough harshness so that even the most curious ran to pack their bags. He then pulled out his cell phone to call Yukimura, but his hand started trembling as he opened it.

Yanagi grabbed his wrist. "I will call him."

Sanada nodded as Yanagi released his wrist and took out his own phone.

The others got Seiika walking, with Yagyuu and Jackal supporting from both sides, but she didn't speak, nor did the glossy, distant look leave her eyes.

Yanagi snapped his cell phone shut. "Let's go."

* * *

They arrived at the hospital, Seiika being piggybacked by Sanada.

It was a quick decision made when they were getting off the bus, as the struggle of getting her up the narrow bus stairs taught them. Sanada didn't suggest it, but he didn't object when, ironically, his guilt weighed him down even further, but this time physically.

They were led to Yukimura's room by a nurse who didn't say much, but she kept on giving weird glances to Seiika, wondering if _she_ was the one who needed to be hospitalized. She finally led them to the room and knocked.

The regulars heard a familiar voice call "Come in!" from the inside, and took a sigh of relief. Their _Buchou_ was here.

She poked her head in the room. "Your friends are here," she chirped. She opened the door wider as Yukimura sat up, seeing the regulars standing there with anxious smiles. He smiled and said a polite "Thank you" to the departing nurse before he raised his eyebrows at the scene before him.

Or rather, raised his eyebrows at Sanada. He then turned, giving Yanagi a mouthed message that only he could read. Yanagi nodded and herded the protesting, but submitting regulars outside.

Yukimura gave a sweet smile, and as if he wasn't carrying his practically unconscious little sister, beckoned the remaining vice-captain in.

Sanada nodded and came in, awkwardly closing the door with his foot to continue holding Seiika. He opened his mouth to try and explain, but Yukimura was busy pulling up a chair by his bedside close to him. Yukimura gestured for Sanada to place her in the chair, and he did.

The fact that Yukimura hadn't said one word to him so far deeply unsettled Sanada. It either meant that he was thinking, wasn't in a talking mood, or was furious. One could never tell.

"Yukimura…" Sanada tried to begin again, but he saw Yukimura silently placing a finger over his smiling lips.

Yukimura then scooted closer to Seiika, who was sitting blankly at his bedside. He pushed the tangled hair out of her face, expertly pulling the knots out of the familiar hair. He took two tissues and started drying her wet face. (Sanada realized at that moment that his back was wet.)

"Hey," Yukimura called to her gently. She sniffled. "Seiika, it's me, Seiichi," he said softly.

Seiika started blinking more frequently, and the shine was restored to her eyes. "Seiichi…?" she blinked. Yukimura nodded. "Seii…" Tears rapidly formed in her eyes.

* * *

"SEIICHI!" Seiika wailed. "HOW COULD YOU LIE TO ME LIKE THAT?" She stuffed her face into the bed. _Kind and compassionate vice-captain..._ She scoffed in her mind.

"Ah, gomen Seiika." Yukimura placed his hand on his crying sister's head lightly. "I'm truly sorry," he frowned, but his disapproving gaze turned directly towards the confused boy standing but 10 feet from them.

"It's okay," she mumbled into the blanket. She picked her head up and looked at her brother's face. "It's _his_ fault, anyways," she frowned. Yukimura couldn't help but almost twitch his mouth into a smile as he saw his friend-at-fault blink blankly behind her.

"Why don't you tell me about it?" Yukimura asked his little sister. His own comforting smile drew out a smile in Seiika.

_But I just went through too much; too much to tell him about._ Her smile faded.

True; Seiika could see her mother, even herself, in his face, but there was something she _couldn't_ see in it.

She couldn't see an older brother in it.

She could only see a stranger.

"Maybe some other time," Seiika replied softly.

Yukimura nodded with understanding in his eyes. "There's a bus from here to around your apartment leaving in a minute or so."

She smiled and turned to leave, but went back to give her brother small hug.

"Bye," she said, breaking out of the hug. Waving, she left, closing the door behind her with a small click.

"Sanada…" Yukimura called out. Sanada emerged from the corner of the room, completely unnoticed by Seiika.

"Yukimura, I-"

"We'll talk about the details later," Yukimura interrupted harshly. He then put on a smile. "Do you know _what_ I lied about, Sanada?"

Sanada frowned. "No."

"I told Seiika that you were a kind and compassionate vice-captain."

Sanada didn't say anything.

"She gave a pretty passionate claim that I was lying, wouldn't you say?" Yukimura stopped smiling.

"Yukimura," Sanada started, expecting to be interrupted. When he wasn't, he dropped his gaze. "…She is weak and careless."

He had read Sanada like a billboard.

"…I see," Yukimura spoke. "But I'm weak right now, aren't I?"

Sanada lifted his gaze in bewilderment. "No, you-"

"And careless, because I let this disease ravage my body, unchecked for weeks. Isn't that right?" Yukimura continued, his eyes burning.

Sanada now gave his captain a stern look. "Don't compare yourself with her," he harshly said.

They stayed in silence, Sanada's gaze never faltering. Yukimura's eyes then softened and his mouth gave a gentle smile. "So Sanada, tell me," Yukimura said, his gentle smiling turning more sly with each word. "Why then, do you compare her to me?"

From the look he was now receiving, Sanada knew that he was being read from the start. Sanada gave a mean glare to Yukimura, angry that he had been read so easily, and that the conversation was now over.

Their discussion-arguments usually ended with a rhetorical question by Yukimura, whether it was the "Are you _really_ trying your hardest?" that came after each of his matches, or the "Do you think this is why you don't smile?" that came after pretty much everything else.

The dialogue, the reading, the question, the glare, just the exit now; and Yukimura knew as well as Sanada that it would be then that the routine was over, and Sanada would close the door and be on his way. Yukimura lay back down onto his bed, but before shutting his eyes, he saw that Sanada had paused in the doorway. Sanada raised a hand in 'good-bye'.

Yukimura watched as the door was carefully shut. Sanada changed the pattern, but he didn't mind.

_He's willing to change… _Yukimura's insight told him, and he smiled his first genuine smile of the day.

* * *

**A/N: I apologize for the lateness! :(**

**Special thanks to reviewers and story alerters! :D**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Lots of developments this chapter = definitely more to come… :D**

**As always, enjoy!**

* * *

Seiika stepped off of the bus, and with the help of her mom's written directions from the bus stop to the apartment, she found her home-as-of-yesterday before her. She stood before the double-door entrance and placed a hand on the handle, but something inside her kept her from opening the door. She quickly turned and began walking in the other direction. She ran a hand through her hair and picked up speed. Soon she was running down the sidewalk, making turns at random corners as she went. Her eyes started to sting, so she shut them as she felt the all-too familiar side cramps from overexerting herself, but she pushed onwards.

_What am I doing... and what am I running fr-_

"OHMYGOD."

Stumbling upon a crack in the cement, she snapped out of her trance and felt her heart beating twice as fast. Pink flushed her cheeks as she looked down at the slightly uplifted cement, and then around for any witnesses. When satisfied that no one was around, she shrugged off her anxiety with a small smile, but did a speedy double-take when sudden realization dawned on her.

She couldn't see the bus station.

Instinctively she took out her phone, but saw it rendered useless in the foreign country.

"Great," she muttered to herself. "Just. Great."

She looked down both directions of the road, lost in the maze of urban Japan, desperately trying to figure out which way she came from. _Geez, just h__ow far did I run?_

After several frustrating minutes, Seiika finally decided to at least try and find her way back. She began walking further from the crack in the ground, but unbeknownst to her, she was furthering the distance from her apartment as well.

She also wasn't aware that a boy in a yellow and black jersey had been trailing behind her since she stepped off the bus, and she didn't hear him when he said, "The probability of her finding her way home… 6%."

* * *

"That is, without my assistance of course," Yanagi continued.

He recalled the phone conversation he had with Yukimura before the regulars had taken Seiika to him at the hospital.

...

_"Okay Renji, do your best to keep them calm… Especially Sanada."__  
__"I will, Seiichi."__  
__"And also… Can you do me a favor?"__  
__"Of course."__  
__"After my younger sister leaves the hospital, look to see if she's dazed or lost in thought."__  
_Yanagi could tell from Yukimura's tone that he was certain that this would be the case._ "__And if she is?"__  
__"Make sure she gets home."  
"Understood."  
"Arigato, Renji."_

_…_

As Yanagi easily kept up with Seiika's pace, although he was surprised at her newfound endurance, he also noted which streets she turned on and was already mentally making directions back to her apartment.

After she had tripped and looked around her, he raised his eyebrows at the fact that she still hadn't spotted him at this point. But since she had paused and was most likely beginning to realize that she was lost, he took out his notebook, ripped a piece out, and started writing directions. When he looked up, he saw that she began walking in the wrong direction again. _Really, now…?_ he thought to himself.

Yanagi ran after her and Seiika turned around when she heard him approach. She stopped in her tracks as she turned to face him, eyes widened. She was puzzled at his presence.

"Hello…" Seiika began. She looked at his face with great concentration as Yanagi was now the one who looked confused. "I'm sorry," she continued. "I don't know your name, but I do remember you from the tennis team."

"Yanagi Renji," he replied, with a little smile for her troubles.

"Yukimura Seiika," she said, although he, along with the rest of the human population, probably already knew that from Sanada yelling it out to the ends of the earth. She had considered telling him 'Koyashi Seiika,' but she knew that that's not who she was. At least not to anyone in the Rikkaidai tennis team, or even the Rikkaidai Middle School for that matter. She suddenly dreaded classes the next day.

"Well, Yuki—" he paused, finding himself unable to address her as 'Yukimura' without thinking of her ill older brother. "Here," he said, handing her the piece of paper.

She cocked her head at being called 'Yuki,' but she didn't mind. She took the piece of paper curiously. "What is this?"

"Something to help you," he replied, as she started smiling upon reading it. "You're lost, aren't you?"

She gave a little chuckle and felt relief lighten her body. "Thank you very much, Yanagi-san!" she said with a small bow. She broke out of the bow, waved, and ran down the sidewalk with her eyes buried in the neatly written directions.

When he made sure that she made the right turn at the corner (_I can't be too careful, I suppose_) he pulled out his notebook, opened to a fresh page, and wrote 'Yukimura Seiika.' He moved the pencil's point to the line under the name, but paused. A minute later, he smiled as he scrawled one word and swiftly put his notebook away.

The once blank page now read:  
_"Yukimura Seiika.  
Potential"_

* * *

"No, she isn't home yet… I see… Mm… I understand. Well okay, it's good to hear from you, Seiichi. I love you!" As Seiika's mom hung up the phone, she heard someone enter the house.

"I'm home, Mom. Sorry I'm la—"

Seiika found herself in a strangling embrace. "It's okay, honey. Oh, I was worried sick, but Seiichi told me everything."

Her eyes widened, but her mom couldn't see it as she was still hugging her. "…He did?"

"Oh yes, yes. He told me how you fainted during tennis practice and the team helped you to the hospital."

Seiika blinked blankly as she vaguely recalled the second part. Did her older brother really tell her mom _everything_ though?

"I'm so glad you're okay, though. Don't worry about school tomorrow, I already phoned them. Just get as much rest as you can, and we'll see what we can do about that jet-lag."

It felt like a weight just lifted itself off Seiika. So he _hadn't_ told her everything, in fact, he may have lied just a little bit. Her mother released her from her grip, and after half-listening and nodding to her mother saying something along the lines of "sorry I had you go to school so early," she said goodnight and walked into her room.

She made sure that her mom had settled into her bed before using her phone as a flashlight (about the only thing it was good for until they got a cell phone plan in Japan). Using its light, she found her way back into the living room and took the home phone. She dialed the number that was on the notepad next to it, and waited.

She grew more anxious as the phone rang, but as soon as her older brother picked up, she began sharing her whole day with him. Yukimura chuckled about her English class, offered advice about fitting in when she voiced her concerns, and hummed sympathetically when he heard Seiika's take on that day's tennis practice. Their conversation was oddly comfortable, and as the night flew by, she found herself lying in bed listening to her brother talk about the team. From his tone, it was as if he was talking about close family, and even though that made Seiika a little sad and even jealous, she began seeing just what they meant to him. The disease itself was not her brother's highest concern; it was getting better so that he could once again live and breathe tennis, and lead the team he loved.

After he had finished talking about the skills and quirks of each of the regulars, Seiika said softly, _"Seiichi, they all look up to you... They miss you dearly."  
_Her brother sighed heavily. _"Seiika, I'm sorry. I gave you some impossible shoes to fill, and now they're even taking out their frustration over me on you…"  
"…That's probably true. But don't worry; your sister is strong!"  
_Yukimura chuckled into the phone. _"Just like your brother, ne?"  
_Seiika smiled. _"Just like my brother."_

By the conversation's end, both felt incredibly close with the other. It was as if they had never been separated eight years ago. They also talked of their parents' divorce, but it was the only topic that brought on tension, so both siblings sensed that and dropped it.

However, the very last part of their conversation was something that Seiika would remember for a long time.

_"Seiika, you still don't remember much from after you fainted, right?"_  
_"Yeah… why?"  
"Oh, nothing."  
_Seiika let out a playful scoff. _"Really, Seiichi? Now I know you're hiding something…"  
_Yukimura hummed, and even after their long talk, poor Seiika still didn't know him well enough to know he was planning something. _"Just know that I'd never lie to you… About _anything_."_

Seiika swore that he had winked. Before she could open her mouth to reply, Yukimura mentioned that it was getting late, and to have a good night's sleep. She managed to get out a "good night," of her own before he hung up. She raised her eyebrows at the phone before putting it down on an unpacked box (a.k.a. impromptu nightstand) and rolling over to a more comfortable spot on the bed.

_He wouldn't lie to me about anything… So he _hasn't_ lied to me about anything?_

She lay in her bed with too much to think about, but before her conscious mind could put the pieces together, she had fallen asleep.

She dreamt of being lightweight, as if floating in the air. But when she looked down, she realized that she was lying on the back of a large lion. She sat up, frozen with fear at first, but saw that the lion did nothing but continue its steady walk. Eventually, the gentle pattering of its footsteps relaxed her and the sight of the lion no longer frightened her. Carefully wrapping her arms around its fluffy mane, she held on, her weight easily supported by its strong physique. She closed her eyes and listened to its steady heartbeat.

Maybe lions weren't so scary after all.

* * *

Seiika woke up early that morning, feeling strangely well-rested. She looked at the clock and saw that it was one hour before school would start, and also mentally calculated that it would be about 6:00 PM in New York right now.

She sat up in her bed and saw that the home phone was still on the nightstand/box. She grabbed it and dialed a number she knew by heart and leaned against the wall while it dialed.

_"Hannah!"_ Seiika said into the phone as soon as she picked up.

_"Seiika! Wow, you're up early. Isn't it like, seven in the morning there?" _The Seiika _she_ knew was not a morning person.

_"Yeah, it's weird. Well, yesterday was weirder..." _Seiika sighed.

_"Oh, what happened? How was the first day of school?"_ the concern for her best friend evident in her voice.

_"Well..."_ She took the next five minutes to recall her experience at Rikkaidai Middle School. Then another fifteen for the hell that was tennis practice, just a little embellished for effect, of course.

_"-and then,"_ Seiika continued, eyes pricking with tears, _"that Sanada vice-captain, monster, whatever he is,"_ (she was so glad to get rid of Japanese formalities), _"told me to stand up after all that, and-"_ She was interrupted by a giggling Hannah.

_"…What? What is it?"_ Seiika asked curiously. Her friend's innocent act had suddenly dispelled all of the anger that had built up inside her while she was sharing the story.

_"No, it's nothing,"_ Hannah assured, and then continued chuckling.

_"No seriously, what's so funny?"_ Seiika asked, a small smile forming behind the receiver of her phone.

_"It's just that..."_ Hannah seemed to be choosing her words carefully. _"It's just, you know... I would expect that the first guy you'd talk this long about would be cute!"_ she finished.

Seiika's smile disappeared instantaneously. Not knowing whether to laugh or scream, she started with a disbelieving chuckle; transitioning into screams of _"ARE YOU CRAZY?"_ and _"_TALKING_ ABOUT HIM? I'M BITCHING ABOUT HIM!"_

When she finally finished-or took a small pause, Hannah didn't know-she slyly cut in, _"Well... is he?"_

Seiika could almost see Hannah's smirk, and missed her friend deeply. _"I... don't know… _Maybe,_ if he wasn't so-"_

Hannah interrupted her with a small squeal. _"Well then, what color are his eyes?"_

Seiika pondered for a few moments before responding.

_"...Evil."_

And they both burst into laughter.

* * *

Despite her mother's protests to stay home for today, Seiika headed off to school after talking to her friend in high spirits. Eyes wandering to the bus window, her heart suddenly dropped with worry at what would happen when she got to school. If Japanese teenagers were anything like their American counterparts, chances were that everyone in the school already knew that she was Yukimura Seiichi's little sister.

Unfortunately, she was right.

Everywhere she turned, it seemed another group of kids were whispering and taking quick glances at her, even pointing at her. They also avoided her, as if Yukimura's disease was hereditary so she had it, and anyone who stood near her would catch it. She was so tempted to yell at every single one of them for their ignorance and stupidity, but she used all of her strength to keep silent and to not pay attention to them. Her brother had told her that the good people would show themselves eventually after this issue sorted itself out, and advised her to be patient.

In the meantime, with nowhere in particular to be during lunch, she made her way to the library. With help from a kind librarian, she picked out a particularly large reference book. She found a seat in a quiet table in the back corner, and the book opened with a sigh.

* * *

Kirihara tried to sleep at his desk during lunchtime, but awoke with a start when he realized his Biology homework was due next class. He dashed to the library and strode over to the reference section.

"...What the..." Frustrated, Kirihara ran his hair through his unkempt hair. He had skimmed the titles, then twice more before he concluded that the medical dictionary wasn't there.

"Crap, crap, crap!" he ran to the librarian's desk. Not being reprimanded for his sprinting, he knew and was glad that the nice librarian was on duty.

"Sensei..." he whispered as loud as he could.

She looked up from the computer and smiled widely. "Ah, Kirihara-kun! What's the matter?"

"I was just wondering where the medical dictionary was," he anxiously tapped his fingers and foot unconsciously. "It's important."

"Oh, I just lent it to that young lady over there," she replied, pointing in the far corner.

Kirihara cringed as he saw his captain's sister, seemingly engulfed in the book. _Failing Biology for the quarter... Asking _her _for a favor..._ He quickly decided to make his way over to her table; getting kicked off the tennis team was not an option, no matter what the circumstance.

Guilt came into his system over yesterday's events, and he even felt some pity as he saw how she was being treated this morning, but he didn't let any of that show as he sauntered over to Seiika.

"Oi, you," he stood over her.

She flinched, but kept her eyes on the book as she silently ran her fingers through her hair in her response (or lack of one).

"Hey," he spoke louder, crossing his arms over his chest.

Hovering over the book, she sat up, but still not facing him. "Yeah?" barely came out. She seemed to be rubbing sleep out of her eyes.

"I need that book," he stated simply.

She sniffled. Ignoring his implication, she asked in a shaky voice, "Did you know that he was this bad?"

He raised his eyebrows at her and stared at her still form for a few moments before finally seeing the tears that fell from her eyes.

"...Hey," Seiika heard Kirihara say. "Are you talking about Yukimura Buchou?"

She nodded.

"Well, are you going to just sit there and cry all day, or are you going to research his disease?"

Not feeling self-conscious for that split-second, she looked up at him incredulously. "Wha..." She looked at him in something verging on disgust.

Kirihara rolled his eyes and crouched down to her sitting-height. He pointed to the book, "You're on 'Ovarian Cancer' right now, and the last time I checked, Buchou doesn't have..." He stopped himself from laughing at her priceless face. "Cancer." _Or ovaries,_ he thought, as he choked down a laugh.

"...Oh," was all she could muster up.

"Yeah, actually knowing Japanese can really help when consulting a Japanese source." She didn't react, so he just proceeded to slide the book over to himself. "Buchou has a good chance at recovery, so don't worry," he spoke softly, almost reassuringly, but it was as if he was comforting himself with those words. There was a brief silence between them as Kirihara lowered his pained eyes, lost in thought. He then slapped on his usual grin almost immediately after. "I'll be taking this, then!" he grabbed the book and began walking away.

"Kirihara..." Seiika called quietly. He turned around mid-stride, and she cast her eyes to the ground. "I'm sorry."

Kirihara was shocked. _For what? If it's because of the coach situation… then it can't really be helped..._

His own apology caught in his throat; somewhere between his better judgment and pride. He turned back around and left without a word.

_But if she's sorry about the book thing, then she's an idiot._

* * *

It turned out that Seiika had not apologized for either of those things. In fact, she wasn't apologizing at all.

She was truly sorry for the tragedy of her brother—Kirihara's captain—and his condition, and how it has affected and pained him this much.

As she watched Kirihara stride away, she couldn't help but feel somewhat jealous of him. His bond with Yukimura was definitely deeper than what she had with her brother, more than yearly holiday calls and even blood.

_They're teammates, comrades… friends._

Seiika felt numb as this realization flooded into her, but with it came understanding and sympathy.

She's not as close to Yukimura as everyone else.

She knows that she can never fill the hole he left, not only in the tennis club, but in everyone's heart.

And most importantly, all of these things were _especially _true to a certain senior; one that she had begun to forgive.

* * *

_It would mean a lot to me if you would just _try_ and be nice to her._

Sanada went through the whole morning with this simple statement in his mind. Well, more like 'manipulative favor/command'.

When Yukimura had called him right when he got home last night, he picked up, expecting to be asked for a report of the team's progress. He _had_ left on... unusual circumstances, so he didn't have the chance to share it with him.

But instead, Yukimura just said that one line into the phone, and hung up.

_Nice? Ten laps is pretty lenient. And she was greatly tolerated, even without physical discipline._

Feeling justified, he focused on the afternoon's English lesson, but a little more avidly than usual. Nonetheless, his focus never shifted out of the foreign language.

That is, until a certain foreigner walked into the room.

* * *

"Koyashi."

Seiika kept walking in the hallway to the English room, oblivious to her name. She subconsciously believed that there wasn't anyone who would call her that at this point.

"Koyashi Seiika?"

Seiika turned around hesitantly and looked straight at her confused principal. "Oh, hai... That's me." She met her gaze with an equally confused one.

"I wanted to talk to you about placing you in a more suitable class this period," she smiled in a very generic, teacher-like way.

"...You mean?"

"Well, your English teacher told me that you're well beyond her class. And even her," the principal chuckled to herself. "I apologize for not taking this into consideration before, but would you please follow me to your new 9th period class?"

* * *

**A/N: Apologies, apologies!**

**But I reeeeeally wanted to get this out today, so here it is.**

**More updates coming, hopefully soon. Nonetheless, please bear with me!**

**FunFact: I didn't know that there would be three phone conversations; I only planned one. It just kinda worked out that way :P**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Chapter 4 is here!****  
****Thanks to my readers, I really appreciate you guys. :)****  
****So without further ado, enjoy!**

* * *

Mr. Franklin had been in the middle of a grueling grammar lesson when a knock at the door was heard.

"Excuse me~" a voice rang out, thick Japanese accent apparent in those English words.

The door opened to reveal a rather short, but kind-looking woman who was greeted with polite bows from everyone in the room. Even with this grand gesture of respect, the principal continued her silly act and the seniors were glad for this short break from the lesson. Some even laughed as she continued speaking in her broken English, but they all fell silent as soon as they heard the words "new student." (Well, more like "ni-u su-tu-den-toh")

The moment said 'su-tu-den-toh' walked into the classroom, the first thing she laid her eyes on, or first person rather, was the Rikkaidai tennis team's fukubuchou. To say that Seiika was shocked would be an understatement.

However, Sanada Genichirou had also momentarily lost his composure when he saw the blue-haired junior enter the classroom.

To make matters worse, over half the class initially mistook her for Yukimura Seiichi, the senior boy who had been a fellow classmate in 9th period Advanced English, thinking this was his early return from the hospital.

Needless to say, it was absolute chaos after the young girl interrupted the lesson.

* * *

The American sensei was successful in quieting down the class, but that was only after he had lost his temper after two minutes of ceaseless chatter and yelled "SHUT UP" to the clamoring students. (The principal had left by then, so his career was not in jeopardy.) Now they were dead quiet, except for the sudden coughs that arose when she introduced herself as Yukimura Seiika.

By this time, there was only five minutes of class left. Mr. Franklin gave a tired sigh as he pointed to an empty seat towards the back-right corner and told Seiika to sit there. However the moment he did so, the students suddenly turned their gaze towards that empty seat - situated next to Sanada.

There was sudden tension in the room as Seiika didn't even make one step towards the desk. The whole class' eyes were now focused on her, but she didn't let her self-consciousness show as she quietly told her new sensei, though it was loud enough for everyone to hear, "No."

The silence was broken again as an audible gasp from a few students filled the room. Even Sanada was staring at her with widened eyes.

Before the teacher could remove the shocked look from his face and yell at Seiika, she quickly stammered, "I'm sorry, but… That's onii—Yukimura's seat, isn't it?" She turned to face the corner, locking eyes with Sanada for a moment before looking away.

The sudden tenderness in her voice removed the redness in the teacher's face, and he nodded slowly.

"He's going to need that seat when he comes back," Seiika said. With a small smile, she added, "I can't just take it from him."

A girl from a desk near the middle of the class raised her hand and spoke up. "Sensei, she can sit next to me, if that's okay with you." Her kind, green eyes looked directly into Seiika's stunned, but grateful eyes.

"…Well, that's fine with me," Mr. Franklin replied. "Seiika, you can have a seat next to Sumi over there," he said, now using fluent English. As Seiika moved to take her seat, he was keen to start restoring his normal class atmosphere. "The students here go by their first names, and I am Mr. Franklin. We work together to make this class a solely English environment from the moment you step in here to the-" He was interrupted by the bell, signaling both the end of class and the end of school.

He took a deep sigh as the students quickly packed up. "To the moment you escape out of here as fast as you can," he finished. Yet, all of the students lingered and gave their sensei pleading eyes, and as if reading their minds, Mr. Franklin said in a defeated voice, "You are dismissed… No homework for tonight."

The class left in high spirits, and Seiika turned to her new desk-mate and said, "Arigato."

Sumi turned to the younger girl and gave her a wide grin. "You're welcome," she said in English with a slight Japanese tint. "I'll see you around, Seiika."

Seiika regarded her with a smile of her own before waving good-bye. She turned back to her desk to continue packing her things when she saw out of the corner of her eye that Sanada was still in the room as well. She couldn't help but thinking that he was intentionally packing up slowly, but when she looked down, she saw that she was doing the same thing. She realized that the both of them just knew that they had to talk.  
Unconsciously, Seiika had already begun planning out what to say, as more of her brother's advice came back to her.

…

_"Oh, Seiika. You planned out a _speech_?" _Yukimura sounded quite amused.  
_"No, not really… Maybe? Well, it didn't work out anyway." _Seiika sighed.  
He had laughed. _"Well, I don't think you need to do that." _His voice became more serious as he added, _"Just don't overthink things, Seiika."_

…

But that was exactly what she was doing; mind racing as she contemplated what to say to him that showed that she could never really understand what he was going through, but that she had some kind of grasp on it.

But what if he apologized? Then would those words be meaningless, would he understand already?

Different situations and circumstances played out in her head, but all of her thoughts seemed to fly out the window as suddenly, the capped senior approached. She look around her and saw that she was indeed the only person he could be going towards now; even Mr. Franklin had left.

She looked up at the tall boy with panic in her heart. Her mind that seemed to empty itself of everything before his presence, including common sense, as she continued to stare at him because no words would come.

When her brain finally output one thought, it wasn't what she had hoped for. It was simply, _Damn, I _do_ overthink things, don't I?_

* * *

_It would mean a lot to me if you would just _try_ and be nice to her._

Both were remembering Yukimura's different words to each of them, but only one of them actually listened to them.

They both stood looking at each other, and while Seiika looked like she was about ready to die, Sanada struggled to put on an I-don't-hate-you face. It ended up looking like I-don't-hate-you-_that_-much, but it was enough to make Seiika relax a little.

Sanada broke the silence. "Are you afraid of me?"

When Seiika cocked her head in confusion, he sighed and added, "Is that why you didn't sit next to me?"

Much to Sanada's bewilderment, Seiika began laughing. He folded his arms as an I-hate-you face threatened to replace the other. "That's not it; I just didn't want to take Seiichi's seat…" She gave Sanada a small smile. "He wouldn't like that very much," she added thoughtfully.

"Oh?" He faltered slightly at her honest reply, but managed to say, "Well, you shouldn't have talked back to the teacher." It wasn't the reassuring 'well in any case, you don't have to be afraid of me' that Yukimura would've approved of, but it was all Sanada could do to maintain his dignity.

Seiika was taken aback at the sudden challenge in his voice, but she just raised her eyebrows. "…What?"

"It's only your second day. Are you trying to make a bad impression here?"

_He just _has_ to win at everything, doesn't he?_ she thought. She bit her lip to keep from laughig in disbelief, but she could do nothing about the amused look in her eyes. "…Okay, you're right," she said, but looking up at him with a taunting smile that indicated that their little bout wasn't over.

Sanada couldn't help but notice how similar she seemed to Yukimura right then as he narrowed his eyes at her grinning face.

A few seconds into their stare-down, Seiika sighed and dropped her gaze. "It's not fair; you've got the height advantage," she murmured, massaging the back of her neck with a pout.

Sanada scowled, betraying the amusement he felt at both her comment and from winning the unofficial staring contest, and began walking out. He stopped at the doorway, turned his head and said, "Let's go."

Seiika slung her bag over her shoulder and tentatively made her way next to him at the doorway. "Um… Where to?"

Sanada blinked blankly, and then as if stating the obvious, he replied, "Tennis practice."

"Tennis pra-" Her confident gaze from before disappeared completely as she recalled yesterday's experience.

Just as she opened her mouth to give him an excuse that would've come out in a shaking voice, his deep voice cut in, "You probably don't know the way to the courts, yet." He paused and tugged his cap lower, effectively covering his face. "I thought that I'd accompany you again," he finished.

He looked up, and much to his relief, saw that the glassy look that had threatened to take over her eyes was gone. She looked up at him with a smile that seemed to make a great weight lift from his whole body. From the gracious look on her face, he knew that she had forgiven him.

"Thanks… I appreciate it." She caught herself once again trying to plan out what to say next, but she looked straight up at him, into the face that seemed to instantly clear her mind of any thoughts. Blue eyes locking firmly with brown, Seiika blurted out, "Even though I can never replace my brother, I'll try my best to be someone worthy of being Rikkaidai's coach."

A brief silence passed, and the junior was shocked to see that Sanada seemed to be regarding her with something other than hatred. "Well, they're never going to let you be coach if you're constantly late."

* * *

In the locker room, a group of boys were changing when one of them saw someone standing outside the tennis courts.

"Oi, isn't that her?"

"Who, Buchou's sister?"

"It _is_ her… What is she doing here? Didn't Sanada-fukubuchou tell her off yesterday?"

"Maybe she can faint and end practice early again!"

The group of junior boys began laughing aloud, but quickly stopped when they saw her running around the court.

"Hey, she's at it again…!"

They watched in silence for a moment, shocked at her boldness, but when she neared the end of her first lap, she slowed to a stop. They started scoffing and chuckling as she bent over and held onto the fence with her right hand and clutched her knee with the other.

"Looks like our _coach_ is done," one remarked sarcastically.

"She did even worse than last time!"

Their taunting was interrupted by someone who stepped behind them to look out the window along with them. They saw his regulars jacket first, and then they turned to face him with wary eyes.

Yanagi kept his focus on Seiika through the window. "Why don't you look again?" he asked them with a small smirk.

* * *

Seiika ran through her first lap with a small doubt, wondering if she should even be here. Yet, something kept her here and kept her running. There was someone, _one _person that, along with her brother, wanted her here.

She reached the end of the lap, her face twisted in pain. She grabbed the fence for support before bending over to look at her feet. "These _freaking_ shoes!" she muttered to herself.

She used her free hand to pry them from her feet, tossing them off to the side. She straightened her back and let out a satisfied sigh at the newfound comfort. She closed her eyes as she brushed the hair from her face and her neck, tying a ponytail securely behind her head with a hair-tie that was around her wrist. A smile appeared on her face as her eyes flicked open, reflecting confidence and determination.

She set off once again around the court, this time with much more speed and power than before as her ankle-high white socks padded against the cement with each stride.

* * *

Sanada was the last to get changed and exited the locker room knowing what was happening from everyone's muttering. He walked outside to see everyone's eyes were on Seiika as she reached the conclusion of her run and leaned her back against the fence, breathing heavily with an arm draped over her eyes.

Everyone's focus shifted over to the vice-captain as he made his way over to her. She didn't notice his approach until she heard his voice ask, "How many was that?"

She dropped her raised arm and blinked a few times to get adjusted to the light. She looked around and saw the tennis members all staring at her. Seiika then looked in front of her and saw Sanada with his arms crossed, fully dressed in his jersey.

She tilted her head, absorbing the current situation and realizing the irony of how similar it was to yesterday's, right down to the expression on Sanada's face. Or was it slightly nicer today?

"More than yesterday," she said with an exhausted, but excited smile.

"Oh?"

"Four times more, in fact."

"So, twelve?"

Seiika nodded as her smile grew, beads of sweat dripping down the sides of her face.

He stared straight at her for a moment before giving her a curt nod. "It's a start."

He unfolded his arms and turned to find that not one person was warming up when practice should've commenced by now - unless training their eyes on him and Seiika counted.

Unfortunately, it did not.

It started with an eye twitch.

It ended with ear-splitting yells demanding one thousand racket swings.

* * *

"That was _brutal!_" Marui exclaimed, back in his school uniform and standing with Kirihara, Yagyuu, Yanagi, and Niou outside the locker room.

"But even Sanada-fukubuchou seemed exhausted after today's practice," Kirihara said.

Yanagi was consulting his notebook when he said, "Yet, he didn't even come close to reaching his limit."

Niou shook his head in disbelief. "That guy really is a monster…" Yagyuu adjusted his glasses in silent agreement to his doubles partner's statement.

They all laughed, but when their Buchou's little sister came over and tapped Yanagi on the shoulder, she got the attention of all of the gathered boys. Intending to speak with only the data master, she felt her cheeks turn pink when they all stared at her silently.

"Um…" she said quietly to Yanagi, but everyone could hear her. "Did Sanada-san leave, yet?"

Yanagi raised his eyebrows in curiosity. "No, I believe he's still showering… Do you need to see him, Yuki?"

Before she could respond, Niou interrupted and said, "Wait, you call her 'Yuki'?"

"I was actually wondering the same thing," Yagyuu said. He turned to her and asked, "Do you mind at all?"

"Uh, not really…" Seiika hesitated. "I guess you can call me Yuki, or Koya—"

"Shoot!" Kirihara suddenly yelled out, patting himself down. "Where's my frickin - oh, 'scuse me Yuki, you were saying…?"

Seiika sighed. "It doesn't matter anyway, you guys are already-" At that moment, the locker room door swung open, and Jackal barged out holding two tennis bags. "Akaya, you left your racket in the clubhouse again!"

"Oh, thanks sempai!"

"Guys, can I _talk?_" Seiika gave an incredulous chuckle. Her patience was running short after being interrupted three times in a row.

"Ah Yuki-chan, before you do, there's something that I've been meaning to tell you…" The unexpectedly soft voice from Marui stopped her from rolling her eyes at the (fourth) interruption as she turned to look at him. The confused look on her face made him laugh as he folded his arms behind his head casually. "Actually, it's something everyone wants to say…"

The confused look was now in everyone's face as they all looked to Marui. Unlike Seiika, he chose to roll his eyes. "Come on, you guys want to apologize, too, don't you?"

Suddenly, the other regulars began looking anywhere but at each other's faces as they all had similarly guilty expressions. Seiika widened her eyes and started waving her hands nervously. "Oh, you don't have to—"

"No," Marui said adamantly.

_Interruption number five,_ Seiika thought with a mental face-palm.

"We all weren't very nice to you," the redhead continued. "But if you can, please forgive…" He pointed to his doubles partner. "Jackal."

Seiika blinked blankly. All of the tension that had built up dissipated as Jackal asked, "…Why me?"

Marui merely shrugged and blew a bubble of his strawberry-flavored gum.

"It's _always_ me," Jackal sighed. "I don't understand,"

"Don't feel too bad; nobody really understands Marui-sempai anyways," an exact replica of Kirihara's voice said.

"Niou-kun!" Yagyuu cried out, while Kirihara simultaneously yelled, "Sempai!"

"It's okay, Akaya," Marui said, glaring daggers at the trickster. "And Yagyuu, I knew it was Niou, too."

"Puri."

Amidst the chaos, Yanagi pulled Seiika aside. "So, why did you want to see Genichirou?"

"I don't know. Are you going to interrupt me anytime soon?" she smiled.

Yanagi chuckled. "Well I'm not, but I can't make any promises for…" He discretely nodded his head towards the now-arguing regulars.

"It was NOT funny, Niou!"

"Was, too."

"Was not."

"Actually, it kind of was."

"Shut up, Jackal. You're supposed to be on my side!"

"Since when were we taking sides, Marui-kun?"

"Since his stupidity put a rift in our team," Niou replied simply.

Seiika smiled as she shook her head. "Those guys…" She turned to look at them, their faces all smiling with suppressed laughter. "They're just like how Seiichi described them."

Interested, Yanagi turned his head to her. "Really? What did he tell you?"

"I think his exact words were 'they're all annoying as hell, but you can't help but love them.'"

"That _is_ something a captain would – no, it's something Seiichi would say," Yanagi said with a fond smile.

Before Seiika could respond, the volume of the 'argument' went up a few notches and the two couldn't help but listen in.

"I think you meant to say since my _genius_ split the team_._"

"If I didn't mean it, then I wouldn't have said it."

"Um, sempais? You'd better stop before Sanada-fukubuchou comes and-"

"Before I come and what?"

Everyone visibly jumped in shock when Sanada's voice was heard. However, his voice lacked its usual venom (probably because of today's especially brutal practice), so Kirihara finished his statement. "Assign us a ridiculous amount of laps? Keep us here for an exclusive, regulars-only practice?"

"Oi, Akaya…" Jackal gave him a playful whack to the head.

Niou then proceeded to hook his arm around the junior boy's neck and give him a not-so-gentle noogie. He leaned down to the struggling head locked in his arm. "Don't be giving him ideas, now," he stage-whispered, loud enough so that everyone could hear.

"Sempai," Kirihara flailed some more, but it was useless in Niou's strong grip. "Let… me… go…!"

"Niou-kun, please let him go."

Niou frowned at his doubles partner, but let go of his kouhai. "Fine, but only 'cause you said 'please.'" As an afterthought he added, "And I guess the brat would help us in dominating at Nationals."

"Wow, so you only spared my life because of my tennis skills?" Kirihara questioned with sarcastic hurt, while rubbing his sore neck that actually hurt.

"And Yagyuu's politeness," Marui added.

Instinct, or maybe just common sense, alerted Seiika to the fact that Sanada had stayed silent for too long while scowling at their antics. She decided that now was the time to talk to him before he finally decided that killing his teammates might be worth it after all.

"Sanada-san," she called, hurrying to his side. She saw out of the corner of her eye that Yanagi had also gotten the murderous vibe from Sanada and was now trying to get the team to settle down.

Sanada didn't look away from the regulars when he asked, "What?"

"I just wanted to thank you…" Seiika's voice spoke softly as Sanada's confusion forced his gaze off of the regulars and he raised his eyebrows at her. "For giving me a chance."

It was suddenly silent at the courts; the other regulars had just left.

"...I see." He then turned around as if to leave, but didn't walk away. With his back to Seiika, he said, "We should go together to see Yukimura soon."

Seiika hesitated at his sudden suggestion, but nodded her head slowly. When she realized he wasn't facing her, she vocalized her agreement. "…Yeah, I think so, too."

"Good." He turned slightly to hold out something to her. "Here."

She took the folded paper from his hand. She eyed it curiously but decided to open it later.

* * *

"…_Hannah, you still there?"  
"Yeah, sorry. Just thinking..."  
"Should I be worried?"  
"No... Well actually, it depends…" Hannah paused. "How much do you like the guy?"  
"…Which guy?"  
"The evil vice-captain dude who was kind of cute?"  
_She laughed at her friend's second-hand description of him. _"Sanada? Well, I don't _hate_ the guy…" _She thought back to after class when he had asked her, almost worried, if she was scared of him. He really didn't look mean then, and maybe it was then that she found him to be kind of… Her heart seemed to stop beating. _"Uh, why are you asking?"  
"Seiika. I think Saturday's going to be a date. That you agreed to."  
"…What."  
"Think about it!"  
"…I _am_ thinking about it, and I've realized that you have officially gone crazy."  
"No, listen. So he gives you his number…"  
__"…So that I call could him later. Which I did."__  
"To set up the date,"__  
"It's not a date, Hannah! We're going to the hospital to visit my brother."  
"…Together."  
"Yes, together, but only so that Seiichi can see that the two of us-"  
"Are a couple."  
"Are not fighting!"_

The conversation went on like this for a few minutes, and soon they were yelling, yet laughing at the same time. After this, they spent an hour sharing updates and stories from their own sides of the world until finally, Hannah had to get ready to go to school.

Hours after the phone call, with all of her homework finally done, Seiika was lying in bed and staring at what would've been the ceiling behind all the darkness of night. Her talk with Hannah suddenly came back to her, and even though the last thing they talked about was school, she could only think about their talk of Sanada and the supposed significance of tomorrow. With a frustrated sigh, she turned and shut her eyes tight to force sleep to come. Most days, this would work and soon Seiika would sleep like a log, only to be forced out of bed in the morning.

However, this wasn't most days. She couldn't get to sleep, and probably because she couldn't get the thought out of her head.

_I'm going on a _date_ with him tomorrow._

Her heart felt like it was beating out of her chest, but she didn't know why what her friend said bothered her so much - seeing as Hannah was a self-proclaimed "lover of all that is love". _A romantic like Hannah would exaggerate things like this a bit, right?_

But even with that in mind, Seiika still found herself unable to fall asleep. She spent a minute or two feeling around for her phone, and then squinted against the light from its screen. It was 1:31AM.

_I'm going on a date with him today._

And with that thought, she passed out.

* * *

**A/N: Did she pass out from nervousness? Exhaustion? Both? Hmm, I wonder. :P**

**So I have lots of plot already for the next two chapters, and I need to somehow bridge that plot to the ending I have planned. Can't wait to get this story done! (I mean that in a good way, haha)**

**Oh, and I drew a picture of my OC, Yukimura Seiika! You can find the link to that in my author description thing on my profile. :D**

**Funfact: The original drawing was done in red pen.**


End file.
